"While this work tackles the difficult issues born of conflicts between law and religion, its scope extends much further, into issues in which the law and religion are frequently aligned...this reference is easy to use...this work is thorough in its scope."
-Church & Synagogue Library Association

"A valuable tool for any academic law library’s reference collection… Court libraries and law firms that specialize in religious legal issues may also find it useful, as well as public, high school, and academic libraries, especially those that are religiously affiliated."
-ARBA

Encyclopedia of Religion & the Law in America

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Pub. Date: March 2009
Hardcover: 847 pages
ISBN: 978-1-59237-298-0
Price: $165.00
EBook ISBN: 978-1-59237-309-3 EBook Vendors

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This informative, easy-to-use reference work covers a wide range of legal issues that affect the roles of religion and law in American society. Extensive A–Z entries provide coverage of key court decisions, case studies, concepts, individuals, religious groups, organizations, and agencies shaping religion and law in today's society.

This Encyclopedia focuses on topics involved with the constitutional theory and interpretation of religion and the law; terms providing a historical explanation of the ways in which America's ever increasing ethnic and religious diversity contributed to our current understanding of the mandates of the First and Fourteenth Amendments; terms and concepts describing the development of religion clause jurisprudence; an analytical examination of the distinct vocabulary used in this area of the law; the means by which American courts have attempted to balance religious liberty against other important individual and social interests in a wide variety of physical and regulatory environments, including the classroom, the workplace, the courtroom, religious group organization and structure, taxation, the clash of "secular" and "religious" values, and the relationship of the generalized idea of individual autonomy of the specific concept of religious liberty.

Important legislation and legal cases affecting religion and society are thoroughly covered in this timely volume, including a detailed Table of Cases and Table of Statutes for more detailed research. A guide to further reading and an index are also included.

This useful resource will be an important acquisition for the reference collections of all public libraries, university libraries, religion reference collections and high schools.

Also Available:

The Religious Right: A Reference Handbook

Pub. Date: March 2009
Hardcover: 847 pages
ISBN: 978-1-59237-298-0
Price: $165.00
EBook ISBN: 978-1-59237-309-3 EBook Vendors

Note: If you find this work does not fit your budget, please print out this page and bring it to your local library. There is a reasonable chance they either have a copy, can direct you to a library that does, or will be willing to purchase it for their reference collection.